PHILOSOPHICAL TOOLS FOR COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE

Single discipline educational activity

Course Sheet

Course code:

PSICOM02

Academic Year of enrolment:

2019

Year of supply:

2019/2020

Type of Course:

Related/Supplementary

Degree:

Course of 2nd Cycle Degree in PSYCHOLOGY

Disciplinary Sector:

LOGIC AND PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE

Language:

Italian

Location:

CHIETI

Credits:

Programme Year:

Professor and Collaborators:

GATTEI STEFANO

Cycle:

First semester

Hours of classroom activity:

Individual study hours:

102

Prerequisites:

None

Objectives

The course aims at providing an introduction to issues and problems of epistemology and philosophy of science, as well as showing as the very idea of 'science' evolved and changed through time. Special attention will be paid to the episodes that witnessed a radical change in the idea of scientific research and practice, and on the key issue of the twentieth century's epistemological debate.
The second part of the course will be specifically devoted to the contemporary debate on mind, brain and artificial intlelligence, surveying the different (and at times contrasting) kinds of interaction between central issues and problems of twentieth century's spistemology, the specific features of cognitive sciences, and the new perspectives they opened to philosophical consideration.

Contents

In the first part, the course aims to offer an historical introduction to the problems that characterize philosophy of science, from antiquity to the present. Special attention will be paid to contemporary epistemological issues, from the crisis of foundationalism at the end of the XIX century, to Wittgenstein, Logical Positivism, Popper and the so-called 'new philosophy of science'.
in the second part, the course will offer - on the basis of the epistemological issues and problems dealt in the twentieth century - the debate on philosophy, neurosciences and artificial intelligence, the mind-brain relationship and the theory of mind. Ana analysis of the genesis and development of the debate will be accompanied my a survey of the different positions within the wider context of contemporary philosophy of science. The survey will be complemented by readings of passages from the key works of a number of authors: Karl Popper and John Eccles, Patricia Churchland, Antonio Damasio, Donald Davidson, Daniel Dennett, Gerald Edelman, Jerry Fodor, John Searle. References will also be made to intelligent machines and artificial intelligence, from Alan Turing to Max Tegmark.

Extended Syllabus

Part I. Historical and critical introduction to epistemology and philosophy of science.
1. The problem of the foundation of knowledge in antiquity, with special reference to Plato and Aristotle.
2. Mediaeval contributions to the refinement of the Aristotelian model (Grosseteste, Scotus, Ockham)
3. The Scientific Revolution: Copernicus, Kepler, Bruno and Galileo.
4. Modern philosophy: the ampiricism of Francis Bacon and the rationalism of Renée Descartes; English empiricism Hume, and the Kantian synthesis.
5. Positivism and the debate on the second scientific revolution.
6. Logical Positivism, Karl Popper's critical rationalism, and the 'new philosophy of science'.

Parte II. Philosophy faces cognitive sciences
1. Framing the debate and discussion of the central issues.
2. Evolution and brain (Edelman)
3. The question of the self and the problem of knowledge (Damasio, Searle)
4. Modularity and thought (Fodor)
5. Mental events and the real world (Davidson)
6. Intelligent machines and artificial intelligence, (Turing, Dennet, Chrchland)

Recommended Bibliography

For the first part, students may choose one of the two following textbooks (in order of preference, from the one closer to the topics presented in class):
M1) David Oldroyd, "Storia della filosofia della scienza", Il Saggiatore, Milano 1986.
M2) John Losee, "Filosofia della scienza. Un'introduzione", Il Saggiatore, Milano, 2001.

As to the twentieth century, either of the two textbooks is to be complemented with ONE of the following texts (again, in order of preference):
T1) Giulio Giorello (a cura di), "Introduzione alla filosofia della scienza", Bompiani, Milano 2006 (chapters 1-2 only)
T2) Roberta Corvi, "La teoria della conoscenza nel Novecento", UTET Università, Torino 2007 (the Introduction and chapters 3-5 only)
T3) Giovanni Boniolo, Paolo Vidali, "Filosofia della scienza", Bruno Mondadori, Milano 1999 (chapters 2 (§5-8), 3 and 5 (§4-6) only).
T4) Marco Buzzoni, "Filosofia della scienza", La Scuola, Brescia 2008 (chapters 3, 5 and 6 (§6.1-6.2) only).

For the second part, the textbook is Eddy Carli, Fabio Grigenti, "Mente, cervello, intelligenza artificiale", Milano-Torino: Pearson, 2019.

Methods of Provision

Conventional

Teaching Methods

Lectures

Evaluation methods

Verification of learning:

The examination will consist of two parts, each of which will be marked with grades up to 15 points.
In the first part, candidates will have to answer, in writing, 5 questions on the foirst part of the course (a maximum of 3 points will be given to each answer, plus 3 points on the overall argumentative skills shown).
In the second, oral part of the examination, candidates will be questioned about 3 excerpts from texts read in class, which he will be asked to comment and put properly into context; each text will be graded up to 5 points.

Contacts/More Information

Before taking the exam, students are encouraged to speak to the professor.

Università degli Studi
"G. d'Annunzio"

Chieti - Pescara

Aree